


Rebuilding

by toph51496



Category: Original Work
Genre: Betrayal, Castles, F/F, Family, Fantasy, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Gen, Love, Magic, Magic-Users, Medieval, Princes & Princesses, Sisters, Undercover, really it's got everything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-21
Updated: 2015-12-21
Packaged: 2018-05-08 06:47:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5487653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toph51496/pseuds/toph51496
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Mortali kingdom starts a war with the magical Magus kingdom, Queen Adrianna and her little sister Princess Dani must find a way to protect their people. But when Dani is sent to kill the Mortali prince, Oliver, she must decide to obey to her sister, the only one she's ever trusted, or to  listen to her heart, which is telling her that murder is wrong no matter the case.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Lake

It was a blood bath; the humans were slaughtering the magical creatures in droves, but through the wreckage ran a small girl carrying a precious bundle in her arms. All the magic warriors deflected the attackers around the girl, shielding her from harm. But the child kept going, clutching the bundle closer to her chest as she ran faster, seemingly oblivious to all the bloodshed. She sped through the battlefields into the safe haven of the woods, only coming to a stop at the lake.  
“Please,” the child begged with tears in her eyes, clutching the bundle closer to her chest as she fell to her knees on the shore of the still lake, “You have to help us!” But nothing happened, and the girl began to sob, “My sister, my sister! Please help my baby sister!” She placed the bundle down in front of her, revealing a small girl, no more than three years old, unconscious and covered in burns.   
Suddenly, slight ripples formed in the lake. The girl watched in amazement as the ripples became larger and bubbles began to form, before a dozen or so beautiful fairies fluttered out. Their lavender skin was deeply contrasted by dark blue hair, stunning pearl dresses and a shimmering aura of cobalt light. They flooded around the girls, bowing their tiny heads to the older one, softly buzzing “My Queen, my Queen.”  
The child sniffled and nodded, “Yeah. Yeah, I am I guess, but my sister. My sister, she’s hurt. She’s dying, please.”   
“My Queen,” The fairies whispered, fluttering about the younger child before lifting her gently into the water, “Do not fret. We will help the little princess.”   
The older girl stared in awe as the moon glowed brighter than ever before, illuminating the lake in a white light, so bright that she had to shut her eyes. When the girl was finally able to reopen them, she saw a most wonderful sight. Her sister was standing ankle deep in the water, her light brown hair had turned white as snow, and when her eyes fluttered open, they were no longer a dark forest green, but instead two bright orbs of cerulean blue.   
“Adrianna?” the younger girl whispered, wading out of the lake.  
The older sister gasped, finally recollecting herself and running towards her sister, “Dani, Dani! Oh thank the Gods!” The girls embraced, the older picking the younger up, mumbling into her shoulder, “I thought I’d lost you too.”  
“It’s okay Adri,” Dani whispered, patting her sister’s head, “I’m not going anywhere.”  
Unbeknownst to the little princess, the little drop of magic that had been inside her tiny body before had been magnified tenfold by the moon that day. And as the sisters hugged on the lakeshore that night, Adrianna took notice of the rainbow of soft sparkling light, swirling around Dani in a continuous stream. And she wondered just what she could do with the amplified magic that surrounded her baby sister.


	2. War Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After eighteen years at war, Adrianna is ready for her final stand.

Over the years, Queen Adrianna continued to wage the war against the Mortali Kingdom, as revenge for the death of her parents, who were killed during the first raids. After eighteen years, Adrianna only felt a deeper thirst for revenge and she ruled the magical realm of Magus with an iron fist, with her sister, the princess, by her side. One day, the queen summoned the princess to the war room, somewhere the younger girl did not frequent. Dani, the people’s princess, dealt with more of the day to day stuff in their kingdom, like tending to the citizens’ complaints, making sure they were all protected and taken care of, preforming knighting ceremonies, and officiating over the many soldiers’ funerals. While Adrianna, the true Queen, devoted most of her time to planning, strategizing and fighting for the war effort. But she shook it off with a sigh and pushed open the grand doors, yelling, “You called?”  
Adrianna rolled her eyes at her younger sister’s antics, “Daniella. We spoke of this.”  
“Of course. My apologies. You summoned my Queen?” she quipped with an over exaggerated curtsy.  
Her sister sighed and gestured for Dani to sit at the head of the long table, placing her hands on the younger’s shoulders before continuing, “Dani, we have been given a very rare opportunity to get inside the house of the Mortali King.”  
“Really? How?”   
Adrianna chuckled, taking a seat next to her sister. “Our circumspectors have noticed that the Prince is in need of a new maid.”  
“Okay… that’s great and all, but what does it have to do with us?”  
“Well, baby sister, that’s why I need you. You will disguise yourself as a Mortali girl and become his new maid. Gain their trust, learn their secrets and report back to me.”  
“So I get to be a real circumspector?”  
“In a way. But I haven’t gotten to the most vital part yet. We have been able to devise a plan to finally conquer our enemies.”  
“Really? That’s fantastic! What is it? Could I be of any assistance?”   
The Queen laughed a bit at Dani’s enthusiasm, “Yes, of course, my dear sister. You know I would never involve you if I did not see your participation as necessary. You see, once you gather all the necessary information, I will contact you through our looking glasses. Then, on my command, all you will have to do is kill the Prince.”  
“K…kill him? Oh Adri, I don’t know. Is it really necessary?”  
Adrianna placed a gentle hand on her sister’s shoulder, “I wish it didn’t have to be this way Dani, but you are the only one I can trust with enough power to get close to the King without being detected. With the Prince dead, the King will be heartbroken and unable to defend his kingdom from our attacks.”  
“But do I have to kill him? Can’t I just put a spell on him to make him look dead? Then you can invade, take over, and no one has to die… well, I mean, except the soldiers. But they enlisted of their own desire to kill us, so…”  
“If the Prince isn’t dead, he’ll lead a resistance against us later.” She grabbed her sister’s hand, squeezing it tight, “Don’t you see, Dani? His death is the only way to save our people.”  
“I just don’t know Adri…murder?”  
Adrianna yanked her hand from her sister’s grasp, sat up straight and looked her dead in the eyes, “Daniella, if you don’t do this, all of our people will die. Every last one of us, and it will be all on you. Every death, on your head. Is that what you want?”  
“No! Of course not.”  
“Then you’ll do it?”  
Dani let out a heavy sigh, before tuning to look at her sister with big, sad eyes, “I suppose. If it’s the only way. I’ll do it.”


	3. Mortali

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dani arrives in Mortali and infiltrates the castle.

Getting into the castle was entirely too simple. After walking through the vast forests for nearly three days, Dani had to admit she was expecting more of a challenge. Upon arrival at the edge of the Mortali lands, the powerful sorceress used a spell to turn her white hair dark brown, like her sister’s, and her beautiful royal robes into rags. Then, she pulled an enchanted shard of glass out of her pack and inspected her appearance. She looked just like any other normal Mortali girl.  
Dani hitched a ride into town with a peddler, who thought she was just another unfortunate refugee. And she had to hold back her astonishment as they passed the many evacuees and simple roadside graves, on the way into town. Dani felt disgusted with herself. As she realized that, until that very moment, she had never even thought about how much her rivals had suffered in the seemingly never ending war.   
Upon her arrival in the Mortali capital, she finally laid her eyes on the absolutely beautiful citadel. Unlike the Magus citadel that she lived in, which had been horribly damaged by the first ambush of the war, the Mortali citadel was truly a sight to see. There was a grand wall surrounding the entire structure with only one large gate leading in and out. It was protected by a dozen or so soldiers, with another handful patrolling the top of the wall. Dani was allowed in with no problem. After all, her only magical artifact looked a simple shard of glass. Once inside, she was able to see the massive amounts of homes and citizens. Most of the people, just like in her lands, were women, children and the elderly, as the men were off fighting in the war. Their houses were close together, and all of the people were packed in. So much so that some of the ‘houses’ were just blankets strung between two sticks that had been shoved into the ground. Dani assumed that many of them had been displaced by the fighting and flocked to the safety of the citadel. Her heart went out to the poor souls. At home, it was her job to help people like these, and part of her wished that she was able to do that here.  
The peddler pointed Dani in the direction of the castle and sent her off. Though he wouldn’t take the gold she’d offered, she stealthy slid it into his cart for him to find later. There was yet another wall surrounding the castle, with even more guards, which she was, once again, able to bypass easily. In contrast to the run-down and damaged castle Dani normally occupied, this one was very well built, with every stone exactly where it should be. Once inside, she got a good look at the beautiful structure. It had three main towers and eight smaller ones, all of which were connected by carefully placed, smooth, stone bricks.   
“Pray, pardon me, Miss?” a guard beckoned, tapping her softly on the shoulder.  
Dani turned to him and smiled, “Yes?  
“Is there anything you need here, Miss?”  
“Oh! Yes, silly me. I was just so amazed. I’ve never seen a castle as grand as this before.”  
“Not many have. It’s a rare sight these days. How can I help you?”  
“Well actually, yes, since you asked. I overheard someone saying that the Prince was looking for a maid. I figured it was the least I could do to help my kingdom in this darkest hour.”  
“I see. Very well, I could bring you to the Majordomo, and he can take care of you from there.”  
“Why, that would be quite lovely, thank you.”  
The guard brought her in through a postern of the castle. It was almost surreal, as she peered down the long hall, to see the many tapestries with the lion crests in blue and gold that her sister had trained her to hate. And, why wouldn’t she? These were the people who killed her parents, who almost killed her. She had to hate them, didn’t she? Dani shook her head. This isn’t what she needed to be thinking of. She was going to help Adrianna take down King William, because it was he who was the true monster. She took a few quick steps to catch up with the guard as he led her up the stairs of the north donjon. At the top, the guard knocked on a door.  
“Who is it?” came a deep, nasally voice from inside.  
“It’s Samuel. I have another girl for the maid position.”  
There was a sigh, “All right, send her in.”  
Samuel smiled at her and opened the door, ushering her in. The room was simple, a big oak desk in the center and bookshelves lining the walls. There were stairs in the back, probably leading to the man’s bedchamber.   
The man himself was old, with wrinkles all over his face and silvery-gray hair. He looked up at her and scowled grumbling, “Quickly, quickly then, come in.”  
Dani rushed into the room and stood in front of the desk, barely noticing that Samuel had closed the door behind her. She stared at the man earnestly, rocking back and forth on her toes. If she messed this up, then what? Adrianna was very specific in her instructions, and if she failed, she couldn’t very well go back home.  
“I’m going to be blunt, young lady,” the old man grunted, “I already have someone in mind for the position, and you are not her. It’s kind of you to offer your services, but we don’t need them.”  
Dani felt her world come crashing down as the man spoke. Her sister would be so disappointed. She had failed her people, and now they would all die, because of her. But then, she remembered an old enchantment, a suggestion spell that she used to use on the cooks when she was a child in order to procure extra sweets. It was a big risk, but if it worked, she’d be in for certain. So she took a deep breath and turned to the man, “But you want to hire me.” She whispered as her eyes flashed gold and her suggestion spell took hold.  
The man blinked a few times before looking back up at her, “Oh, oh! Young lady, I was horribly mistaken. You are the right person for the job. Just tell me your name, and I’ll get you right to work!”  
She smiled brightly, “My name’s Daniella, but everyone calls me Dani.”  
“Well Dani.” He shook her hand, “Welcome to Mortali.”


	4. Prince Oliver

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dani meets the Prince for the first time.

The chores themselves were no more work than she was used to. After all, Dani was the people’s princess, and she found that the best way to relate to them was to actually do some of the things that they had to do, and if that meant Dani had to do some chores, she would. She cleaned around the castle and did laundry with the maids, cooked with the chefs, grew crops with the gardener and even worked with the physician from time to time. Just like her mother used to. So when she was tasked with doing the prince’s laundry and cleaning his room, it wasn’t a big deal.  
It’s just that Dani wasn’t really expecting to get to know the Prince, or at least she didn’t want to. It would make things easier on her later, if she had to put him down, she’d rather not know the life she was taking. After all, it might make her change her mind. At first, she hadn’t been too worried since, she had been there for two weeks, without even officially meeting the Prince yet. She had a pretty good picture of him though, because it’s easy to learn about a man through his laundry. But undercover work was, at the very least, unpredictable.  
On her sixteenth day working undercover, Dani was taking the laundry from the Prince’s room down to the stream to wash it. She was amazed at the mess he could make in one night. His once neatly made bed was now a mess, with his silk sheets flung over the bottom of the bed. His clothes were strewn all over the floor, as if he couldn’t decide what to wear this morning. Dani let out a sigh and went about gathering the laundry, more than usual, of course. She remade his giant-sized bed with the fresh sheets she had brought in, making sure the corners were crisp and the edges were smooth. Due to the amount of clothes on the floor, it took her longer to tidy up his room than usual, and as she was walking out of the room, someone ran right into her, causing all the clothes to fall all over the floor.  
“Hey!” Dani yelled as she fell on her backside into the room, “Watch where you’re going!”  
“Watch where I’m going?” came a voice from the other side of the doorway, “It’s my room. You watch where you’re going!”  
Dani jerked her head over from where she was gathering the fallen clothes and, to her surprise, saw none other than Prince Oliver sitting on the ground in front of her. Her eyes widened, “Oh my, Sire! I’m so sorry!”  
“Mm, you must be the new maid.” He stood up and brushed the dust off his shoulders, “I’ve been meaning to find you and introduce myself.”  
“O…oh,” she stuttered, scratching the back of her head nervously, “Yeah, that’s me.”  
“Well, I’m Oliver, as you probably already know.” He extended his hand down to her, “What’s your name?”  
“Daniella, but, uh, everyone calls me Dani.”  
Oliver smiled, “It’s nice to meet you Dani. May I assist you in picking all this up?”  
“Oh, you don’t have to help me, Sire. I can clean it up.”  
“When we’re alone, it’s Oliver. And I insist.” He crouched down next to her and started soppily gathering clothes into a messy pile, “Besides, I would like to get to know you.”  
“Really? Me?” she brushed her hair out of her eyes, “You don’t have to do that Sire, I’m no one special.”  
“I like to know everyone who works here. Especially,” he put the last of the laundry in the pile before standing up and offering his hand to Dani, “nonpareil girls like you.”  
She raised an eyebrow, “You really think so?”  
“Of course! The most beautiful maid in the entire castle.”  
Dani rolled her eyes, “Most of the other maids are old enough to be your mother.”  
“Precisely.”  
“But you’re a Prince, and I’m just a maid.  
“That doesn’t mean I can’t think you’re nonpareil.”  
“I suppose not.” She smirked, lifting the bundle on to her hip. She eyed Oliver suspiciously before smiling and walking away. But just before descending the vice, she dared to look back, and there he was, still standing in his doorway, looking at her. Color flooded to her cheeks, and she heard him laugh as she scurried down the vice as fast as she could go. Without using her magic.


	5. Lights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five months on, Dani and Oliver watch the Lumen Ostende (lights).

“It’s been five months, Adri,” Dani whispered into the shard. She silently thanked the Gods that she had her own room, however small it was-- just a small table, two stools, a chest and a bed. It would be pretty bad if someone saw her enchanted glass shard, because she wasn’t fond of the thought of being burned at the stake. “When do I get to come home?”  
“Soon, Dani. I have all the information I need, but I want to wait until it’s a bit warmer before I start a full scale invasion. You don’t want our troops to freeze to death, do you?”  
“No. No of course not, you’re right. I just miss you and…” there was the sound of hurried footsteps in the hall, “Someone’s coming. I’ll contact you later.” Dani waved her hand in front of the glass, making Adrianna disappear before jumping into her small bed. She feigned sleep as the door flung open.  
“Dani!”  
She jolted up and turned toward the intruder, “Sire? Is that you? What, are you doing in here?”  
He ran up to her and grabbed her wrist. “Come on, you must come and see this.”  
“See what?”  
“Come on!” He tugged her arm a bit until she stood up, then he began dragging her down the hall.  
“Calm down!” she whispered, “I’m coming!”  
They had to dodge a couple guards before coming to the doors leading to the outer wall. When Oliver swung them open, Dani immediately felt the cold hit her and began to shake. “It’s freezing out here! What’s so important?”  
He turned to look at her, “Oh. Gosh. Your nightgown is really thin.”  
“Yeah. I know. You didn’t tell me to grab a cloak.”  
“Well here,” he slid his own cloak off, draping it around her shoulders, “Take mine. My nightclothes are much thicker.”  
“Oliver, I can’t…”  
“Never mind the cloak,” he ran over to the wall, “Just come look.”  
Dani strolled over, and, glancing over the wall she was able to see a stunning light show coming from just over the mountains, illuminating the landscape with various shades of blue, purple, pink and green. Her mouth fell open in amazement as she whispered, “What is that?”  
“That’s the Magus people. They’re having a sort of celebration, I think. It happens every once in a while. But I’ve always thought it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.”  
Suddenly it dawned on Dani what the light show was, the Lumen Ostende, a light show her people put on during heriots. She had never seen it from so far away before, as she usually led it herself. And though she always thought them beautiful, they were even more extraordinary from here, which was saying something.  
“So? What do you think?”  
“They’re truly the most amazing things I’ve ever seen!”  
He smiled at her, “I thought you’d like them. You know, my father has this whole thing against them, the Magus people, he thinks they’re evil. But, from where I stand, looking at this, I can hardly believe him.”  
“Why do you think he hates them so much?”  
“A Magus man killed my mother.”  
“Oh, Ollie, I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”  
“No, no, it’s ok. I don’t remember. I was just a child, four years old maybe.”  
“Still, I can’t blame your father for being so angry.”  
“I can’t blame him for being angry at the one man, but slaughtering an entire race based on the actions of one. Sometimes, it seems unnecessary.”  
Dani looked at him with sad eyes, “I know.”  
They stayed out and watched the rest of the show before Oliver took Dani by the hand and escorted her back to her room. “Well, here we are,” he said, opening the door.  
“Thank you my Prince.” She giggled, giving a slight curtsy.  
He laughed, before walking over to her small bed, running his fingers along the thin quilt, “Is this all you have?”  
“Yeah,” she said, taking off his cloak and handing it back to him, “Why?”  
“It’s so thin! How do you stay warm?”   
“Oh, uh, I don’t know. I’m just used to it, I guess.”  
“No, that’s all wrong. You shouldn’t have to do that! I’m going to get you a new one. Nice and big and really thick. Something to keep you extra warm.”  
“Sire, you don’t have to do that. I’m fine.”  
“Nope.” He said, walking out the door, “It’s already been decided.”  
And, the next day, when she walked into her room after a long day of work, there was a very soft, thick quilt draped over the foot of her bed.


	6. Mistaken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dani reflects on Adrianna's wishes.

“You want me to do it when?” Dani asked astonished.  
“Any day now Dani. The invasion force is ready and I need the Prince dead as soon as possible. So hurry up about it. I’ve given you months to prepare, you have no excuse.”  
“Adri, I’ve been trying to tell you. I don’t think this is a very good idea.”  
“Dani. I don’t care what you think, you are too close to this. Just do the job, and come home.”  
“No. Adrianna, I’m serious. I don’t think killing Ollie is the right decision. He doesn’t hate us. He doesn’t like the war either. He could be an ally.”  
“You’re going to kill him. That’s it. End of discussion.”  
“No Adrianna wait…” but it was too late, her sister image had already vanished from the glass shard.  
Dani groaned and slammed her hands down, frustrated. She didn’t want to hurt Oliver. She couldn’t. She had gotten too close and she knew it. Dani sighed before crossing her small bedchamber to place the glass shard in a drawer, before flopping down on her bed to think. If Adrianna just met Oliver, got to know him, surely she would agree that he could be an asset. He could raise a rebellion against his father, he could help them. Maybe if she could just delay Oliver’s death long enough, Adrianna would come to reprimand her and realize that it wasn’t Dani who was mistaken, but her.


	7. Intruder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's an intruder in the Mortali castle.

About a week later, Dani was walking down to the kitchen when she saw a glimpse of a familiar face out of the corner or her eye. “No.” she whispered, in shock. If that was really who she thought, he wasn’t here to do anyone any good. Dani slipped down the hall after him, hiding behind walls to dodge him. She could just turn herself invisible, but if the spell faded when someone else was around, that would be very bad. As the man stealthily slipped out the door, Dani was able to catch a better glimpse of his face. It was Charles, a very powerful wizard who was an old friend of her father’s. He was the one who taught Dani and her sister to properly use their powers. But, most importantly, Charles was the general in her sister’s army.   
Some part of Dani realized that she could call the guards and turn him in. But then, she’d have to explain why she knew he was a Magus. And she certainly couldn’t do that. So she glanced around, and, since she saw no one, pulled her enchanted shard out of her apron pocket, intent on speaking with her sister. She had to get Adrianna to tell her what Charles was doing here. If he was here to hurt Oliver, Dani would have to know how to counteract whatever spell or poison he used. Just as her sister’s image appeared in the glass, the door began to creak open.  
She quickly waved her hand over the glass and shoved it back into her apron pocket.   
“Dani?” Oliver asked, stunned to see his maid in this part of the castle. She rarely ever came near the training grounds.  
“Sire.”  
“What are you doing here?”  
“I was, uh, looking for you.”  
He raised an eyebrow, “You were?”   
“Yeah. I was finished tiding your room, so I figured I’d get started on your armor. It must be filthy from all that training you did today.”  
“It is. But I’ll have a knight carry it into the armory for you, like I always do. It’s much too heavy for a small maiden like yourself.”  
Oliver coughed into his arm, causing Dani to raise an eyebrow, “I’m sure I could manage.”  
“Why of course. But I’d rather you not. Now, what is that you’re hiding in your apron?”  
Dani’s eyes grew wide, “What do you mean?”  
“You’re concealing something in your apron pocket.”  
“I am not.”  
“I saw you stash it in there Dani. What is it?”  
She panicked slightly. There was no way she could actually tell Oliver that she had an enchanted glass shard in her pocket. But she would feel bad lying. Though, he probably wouldn’t know it was enchanted, there was no way to tell unless you were a witch or wizard. So, maybe she could tell him a half truth, tell him what it was, physically, but not what it could do. Dani let out a long sigh, “I guess you caught me.” She pulled the shard from her pocket.  
“What are you doing with a shard of glass?” he coughed again, “You could harm yourself!”  
“Don’t worry,” she chuckled, scanning him intently with her eyes. “The edges have been filed down.”  
“But why do you have it?”  
“It was part of a mirror that belonged to my mother. She and my father were killed in the war. Her favorite mirror was destroyed when our house was desecrated, but we managed to salvage a few pieces. It’s one of the only things I have left of her.”  
Oliver’s eyes grew wide, “They were both killed?”  
“Yes. But I was young, I hardly remember.”  
“Where did you go?”  
“I had my sister. We took care of each other.”  
“That must be why you speak of her so often.”  
“It is. She is the most important person to me.”  
“I can only imagine.” Oliver whispered, before breaking into a coughing fit.  
Dani took two quick steps to his side, patting him on the back, “Oliver? Are you alright?”  
He finished coughing, standing up straight as if it had never happened, “I’m fine.”  
“You most certainly are not. How long have you felt ill?”  
“I don’t.” he stared at her defiantly for a few seconds, before letting out a loud sneeze.  
“Mm hm.”  
“Really,” he sniffed.  
“Of course.”  
“You’d best get to polishing my armor.”  
“Very well, Sire.” Dani quipped, walking towards the armory, pretending not to hear the string of sneezes that came from the other end of the hall.  
It took Dani almost the rest of the day before she was finally done cleaning Oliver’s armor. She was a bit concerned, since she hadn’t seen Oliver after they argued earlier, but she was even more concerned for his apparent illness. It was strange, she thought, he hadn’t seemed ill earlier, but it was clearly evident when they last spoke that something wasn’t right with the Prince. Her mind wandered back to Charles, and she wondered if perhaps he had done something to Oliver. But what if he had? Was it Charles alone, or could Adrianna have dismissed Dani’s concerns completely and ordered Oliver’s death? She quickly determined that she had no choice but to summon her sister with her enchanted glass shard.   
Just as Dani was about to complete the spell, she heard a soft knock at her door and shoved the shard under her pillow, before running to open it. “Can I help you?”   
Sarah, another maid, was standing timidly on the other side, “Dani, I’m afraid the Prince has fallen ill.”  
“What? When?”  
“I’m not sure, but when I went to wake him for dinner, I found he was running a high fever. The physician isn’t sure if he’ll make it through the night.”  
Dani’s eyes widened, tears forming, “What?”  
“He’s calling for you.”  
“Huh?”  
“In his sleep, he’s been calling for you. The physician said to wait until he was finished. As soon as he was done I came to get you.”  
Dani, still in shock, nodded, following Sarah across the castle and up to the Prince’s room. She took a deep breath as Sarah pushed open the big wooden doors; this could be the break she was looking for. Oliver would be dead, Adrianna’s plan would be in place, and Dani wouldn’t have to do a thing.   
She sat on the bed next to him, and from there she could hear him whisper her name, softly and desperately. She interlaced her fingers with his, and ran her other hand through his hair. “Shh,” she soothed, “shhh, it’s okay, Oliver, you’re going to be all right, you’ll see. Just rest now.”  
“I’ll just leave you with him.” Sarah said, backing out of the room, “The King has been summoned, but he is busy with the war council; a scout has spotted Magus invasion forces over the horizon, so I’m not sure when he’ll be in.”   
“Grammercy, Sarah.”  
She nodded and shut the door softly.  
Dani sat there for a while, internally debating what to do. But then it occurred to her that it was just too convenient. And too quick. There was no way that Oliver could be fine this morning, and dying tonight. No way unless, of course, she really did see Charles, and he actually poisoned Oliver, or put a spell on him. Dani panicked. Had this been a normal illness, she could’ve healed him with little effort. But if it was magical, especially Charles’ magic, she may not be able to counteract it. But then, Oliver started coughing. It was soft at first, but soon it was wracking. She sat him up, rubbed his back, and tried to soothe him, but nothing was working, and it was getting difficult for him to breathe.  
And when she saw him, sweaty, pale, and gasping for breath, she knew that she couldn’t let him die. He was her best friend, her Prince, she couldn’t, wouldn’t lose him. Not for her sister, or her people, not anyone. Not when there was something she could do about it.  
She placed one hand on his chest and the other hand on his back before summoning her magic. Her eyes sparkled gold as she concentrated, and, sure enough, Oliver’s breath slowly returned to him. However, when he was finally able to open his eyes, they winded as they settled on Dani. She studied his shocked expression for a moment, before realizing the healing magic had taken up so much of her power that her appearance charm had worn off and her hair had reverted back to its normal snowy color.  
“You’re a Magus.” He whispered hoarsely.  
She jumped up, biting her lip and nodding yes.  
“I trusted you.”  
“I’m sorry.”  
“For almost a year now, I trusted you.”  
“I’m so sorry.”  
“Leave!”  
“Oliver, Ollie, please, listen. I…”  
“No. You listen.” He sat up straight. “You’re fortunate that I don’t have you executed. However, since you saved my life, I’ll spare yours.”  
“Oliver…”  
“You have no right to call me that.”  
“Sire then, please, listen.”  
“I will call the guards.”  
“And I can stop them. Sire, look, I could force you to listen. But I am begging,” she dropped to her knees at his side, “If you ever cared for me, please let me warn you of what’s to come.”  
“Why should I trust you? How do I know it wasn’t you who tried to kill me to begin with?”  
She looked at him, desperately, “I didn’t, I saved you. I’m your friend…”  
“You were! Not anymore! Now get out of my sight before I have you killed.”  
Tears fell from Dani’s eyes as she whispered, “I’m sorry.” Before her eyes began to glow gold, “You will listen to me.”  
Oliver opened his mouth to speak, but found he couldn’t. His hands flew to his throat, as he tried to decipher the problem.  
“I put a silencing spell on you,” Dani explained, gently pulling his hands down toward his lap. He ripped them away from her, staring at her accusingly. “I’m sorry. But you wouldn’t listen. Oliver, I’m not just any Magus. I am the Princess and my sister is the Queen.”  
His eyes widened.  
“My sister… she has ordered your death. Ollie, you have to let me protect you. Adrianna won’t stop until she gets what she desires.”  
He violently shook his head no.  
“Oh. Oh, your voice, right. I’m sorry.” Her eyes sparkled, “You may speak.”  
“Out. Get out now! I never want to see you again!”  
Dani rose from the floor, running for the door. But she paused before leaving, turning back to face Oliver for what she thought would be the last time, “Just be warned, my sister is out for your blood. And she always gets what she wants.”


	8. Betrayal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sisters come face to face.

Dani went off into the woods. She couldn’t stay in Mortali, but she couldn’t go home either. She could never face her sister again. Suddenly, she became overwhelmed with an immense feeling of dread. In an instant, she turned around and sped back to the Mortali lands, using magic to glide easily across the terrain, until she reached the border. Then, she ran as fast as she could, not stopping for anything, not even the army of Magnus she saw climbing up the side of the mountain. She ran through the square and into the castle, heading straight for Oliver’s room. When she swung the doors open she was astonished to see Adrianna herself forcing Oliver into a small corner in the room. In her hand, she held her bright red magic, right up to his head.  
“Adrianna stop!” she screamed, throwing a purple blast of magic right behind her sister, just barely missing her back.  
Adrianna grabbed Oliver’s throat, holding him against the wall as she spun to face her sister, “Why are you defending him?”   
“Because he’s my friend!” Dani yelled, ducking as her sister threw a blast of magic at her.   
“You were supposed to kill him Dani!”  
“I never wanted that!” She threw repeated blasts at Adrianna, each a new color. Though all of them hardly missed her.   
Adrianna dropped Oliver, facing her sister completely. “What you want doesn’t matter! It’s for the good of our kingdom!”  
“No Adrianna. It’s for revenge.”  
“And what if it is? They were your parents too!”  
“And is this what they would have wanted? For you to execute an entire kingdom?”  
“It doesn’t matter what they would want! They’re dead Dani!” She levitated Oliver off the ground with her magic, “His father killed them.”   
“Enough!” Dani bellowed, knocking Adrianna on her behind, releasing Oliver from her grasp. She stood between the two of them, “If you want him or this kingdom, you have to go through me.”  
“Very well, Daniella. I will.” Adrianna rose over Dani and Oliver. Her brown hair glowed softly and green eyes lit up gold, “But just remember, I never lose.”  
“It’s about time you do.” Dani rose to meet her sister as her hair began glowing bright white. Her blue eyes turning gold.   
Adrianna growled with anger, bursting through the ceiling. She had never felt so enraged in her entire life, not even when her people went to war or when her parents were murdered. But her sister had so blatantly betrayed her, and now she must pay.


	9. Rebuilt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dani picks a side and fights against her sister.

When Dani followed her sister up above the castle, she was able to see that the Magnus army had started a bloody massacre beneath her. She watched as her people, the ones she vowed to protect, slaughtered defenseless civilians, innocent men, women, and children.   
“Everybody halt!” she bellowed in a mystical voice that wasn’t her own. It echoed throughout the land and everyone seemed to stop what they were doing for just a second, to look at her. Even Adrianna took an extra second to stare at her baby sister.   
It didn’t last long though, because as soon as she realized that there was a lack of action going on below her, Adrianna screamed, “Keep Fighting!”   
When the slaughter resumed, Dani was horrified, and in her anger she blasted a couple of Magnus soldiers away from the civilians. “I said halt!”  
“Don’t listen” Adrianna hissed, “I’m your Queen, not her.”  
But Dani was having none of it, with a blink of her eye, she froze all the soldiers in place, with only their eyes remaining under their own control. Their eyes seemed to bulge out of their sockets full of terror, all looking up at Dani. She rose up in front of her sister  
“You tried to kill him. You’re trying to kill them all!”  
“It’s what they deserve!”  
“There was only one man who killed our parents! It was his choice, not theirs. These people do not deserve to suffer!”  
“Their lives do not matter. I want their King to suffer! As I have, as we have. They killed our parents, slaughtered our people!”  
“I’m begging you Adrianna.”  
“I’m the Queen, Dani. You must obey me.”  
Dani’s hair and eyes flashed brighter like white flames. Magic swirled about her, in various shades of sapphire, rose, lavender, orange and yellow. It zapped soldiers away, set small fires, and sent a blast of multi-colored magic hurdling towards her sister. With a booming voice she screamed, “I know what you are! I’ve obeyed to you my entire life! I’ve done everything you’ve ever asked of me, and the one time, the one time, I asked something of you, you wouldn’t do it.”  
“I had no choice!” Adrianna tried to reason, but her sister was unreachable.   
Dani clenched her fist, and the magic enclosed around Adrianna, the life started to flood out of her. “Enough! You killed them, you said it was the only way to peace! But you’re wrong! The only one killing here is you!”  
“Dani….” Adrianna choked, hands going to her throat.  
“Do you think this is how they felt? When you executed them!”  
“Dani!” came a voice from below, “Dani stop! You’re killing her!”  
“So? She butchered them!”  
“She’s still your sister, and you love her!”  
Dani’s head snapped over to look down into the castle, “Oliver?” she whispered in her normal voice, as her eyes and hair began to lose their glow.  
He smiled, “Aye, that’s right.”  
Dani dropped her sister, but Adrianna caught herself with her own magic and continued to float above the castle of her own volition. “Nay.” she yelled, “Nay! Nay! You will pay! You both will!  
Dani stopped, halfway between Oliver and Adrianna. She looked back to her sister, just as she sent a massive ball of blood red magic flying at her head. Dani gasped, throwing her hands up before shutting her eyes tight.   
To the surprise of both girls, a flow of dazzling rainbow light engulfed the ball of red fire. Disappearing momentarily before reappearing, flying back in the opposite direction.   
“I’m sorry Adri.” Dani whispered with tears in her eyes, as the ball hit her sister, sending her flying out, deep into the woods.   
Dani let out a deep breath, before flicking her wrist and releasing the soldiers. “I am in command now. Stop attacking and drop your weapons.”  
All the people in the land looked up to her, and one by one, they took a knee and began to bow. Even as she turned to look at Oliver, he was kneeling on the ground, head lowered. She smiled and rose him up to her, wrapping an arm around his waist so he could float alongside her.  
“We are going to rebuild these lands, together, in peace.” Dani said gently, “And anyone who has a qualm with that may join Adrianna in the woods.”  
All the people just stared, some nodded, some smiled, but not one walked away. And when the King protested later, Oliver had him thrown straight in the dungeon.  
The lands were soon united under Dani and Oliver in peace and tranquility. But somewhere, deep in the forest, Adrianna began gathering an army of all she could, hoping one day, she could take back her kingdom.

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is the first time I'm letting anyone read this all the way through, so I'm a bit nervous. But I really hope you like it!


End file.
